Stone Bridge High School swept Broad Run in a varsity basketball doubleheader Dec. 29 on the final day of the fifth annual Honda of Dulles Holiday Battle of Ashburn tournament.

The Bulldogs girls defeated the Spartans, 55-46 in overtime, to finish 2-0 overall and win the tournament. Stone Bridge capped the doubleheader with a 82-66 win over Broad Run in the boys game. The Bulldogs, Spartans and Briar Woods each finished 1-1 to give all three boys’ teams a share of the trophy.

“It’s awesome; other schools can’t talk to us about anything,” Stone Bridge senior Nikki Prince said of the girls title. “Now we can talk, but we’re not going to.”

The tournament began Dec. 27 with Broad Run girls and boys defeating the Briar Woods’ squads. Briar Woods and Stone Bridge met the following day, with the Stone Bridge girls and the Briar Woods boys earning victories.

The girls took to the court first Dec. 29. Both squads jockeyed for leads in a first quarter that included two ties and five lead changes. With just two seconds remaining in the quarter, Annie Bokulic sunk a jumper to give the Bulldogs a 12-11 advantage.

The Spartans began the second quarter sluggishly, allowing the Bulldogs to go on a 9-2 run. A key 3-pointer from Ellie Ferguson helped Broad Run shift the momentum in their favor and the score was close again at half, with the Bulldogs up by a narrow 25-22 margin.

Both teams emerged from the locker room with a vengeance that left them deadlocked 34-34 after three quarters.

Taylor Tashjian and Ferguson started the fourth quarter off with big 3-pointers to give the Spartans a leg up. Both teams then underwent a scoring drought before Prince, the game’s high scorer with 28 points, was able to convert a layup. Prince would lead the Bulldogs clawing back in the fourth to tie the game at 41-41 and force overtime.

“We’re a team of runs. We get up real quick and get down,” Stone Bridge coach Dana Robinson said of the momentum shifts. “But we know how to keep our head in the game.”

After both teams made early baskets in overtime, Prince would help Bulldogs (7-4) pull away, notching eight points to help solidify a 55-46 win and the title of top team in Ashburn.

“Nikki is the true leader of this team,” Robinson said of her senior guard. “She sets the pace, she sets everything about the game. The girls trust her, she runs the floor and I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

In addition to Prince’s 28, Megan Della Penna and Caitlyn Cannon added 10 points. Broad Run (7-6) was led in scoring by Ferguson with 20 points, while Alyssa Cabellos totaled eight.

Broad Run jumped out to an early lead in the boys game as junior Khiorie Stewart drained a pair of 3-pointers. Though Broad Run never surrendered the lead to Stone Bridge, the Bulldogs were able to stay within striking distance, tying the game up once in the second quarter at 33-33.

The Spartans maintained their momentum in the third quarter, leading by as many as 10 points, but the Bulldogs continued to claw back. Stone Bridge senior Jimmy Higgins kept the Bulldogs in contention, scoring six points in the third to help reduce the deficit and end the third quarter down just two, 53-51.

The fourth quarter proved to be all Stone Bridge. The Bulldogs outscored the Spartans, 31-15, capitalizing at the free throw line as both teams faced foul trouble. The Bulldogs scored 17 of their 31 fourth-quarter points from the line as two Spartans fouled out.

The victory snapped a seven-game skid for Stone Bridge, who improved to 3-8 on the season.

“We’ve had a really rough stretch the last couple of weeks,” Bulldogs coach Ben West said. “I’ve been coaching a long time and I’m probably most proud of a team tonight. Because of all of the hard patches we’ve gone through, for them to come out and play like they did tonight, I’m really proud of them.”

“We came out knowing we’ve never beaten Broad Run before, as a varsity program, so it’s kind of huge for us,” Rahman said. “It’s something I wanted to do before I graduated, so it’s one thing off the check list.”

Stewart led Broad Run (4-6) with 16 points. Jaleel Robinson (11 points) and Bryce Humphrey (10) also reached double figures. The Spartans won the first meeting against the Bulldogs, 50-40, on Dec. 4.

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